


And I Will Crown You in Dead Memories

by shockandlock



Series: Trials of Fatherhood [3]
Category: Fire Emblem Series, Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Father-Daughter Relationship, Fatherhood, Flower Crowns, Flowers, Gen, Parenthood
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-28
Updated: 2020-01-28
Packaged: 2021-02-19 15:43:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 536
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22446691
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shockandlock/pseuds/shockandlock
Summary: Out of all the things that he taught Byleth throughout her life, he supposed that, through him, this could be something that her mother taught her instead.
Relationships: Jeralt Reus Eisner & My Unit | Byleth, Jeralt Reus Eisner/My Unit | Byleth's Mother, Jeralt Reus Eisner/Sitri Eisner | Byleth's Mother
Series: Trials of Fatherhood [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1496096
Comments: 3
Kudos: 65





	And I Will Crown You in Dead Memories

**Author's Note:**

> *should be working on AU that I've been procrastinating on* fuck it. more parental Jeralt shorts

_ “She loved flowers.” _

The words often came to the tip of Jeralt’s tongue. How he had longed to tell Byleth of her mother, but there was never a time that felt right. Besides, as much as it pained him to admit it, he wasn’t even sure if Byleth would care if he told her.

In a rare moment of respite, he found an isolated spot near camp where wildflowers of reds, yellows, and oranges sprouted. It was as if the sunset had touched this patch of land and never left. Byleth’s mother would have loved it.

_ “Yellow flowers are my favorite,”  _ she had told Jeralt once.

He had raised an eyebrow at that.  _ “Why yellow?” _

_ “Isn’t it obvious?”  _ she had asked, reaching up to thread her fingers through his hair.  _ “They remind me of you.” _

He could remember very few times in his life when he was left absolutely speechless. Maybe that was her own little magic.

Jeralt wasn’t ever one to pick flowers, but he gathered a handful: marigolds, gerbera daisies, and daffodils cut with a hunting knife, which was the most practical tool he had for the task at the moment. It’s not as if he planned for this on a daily basis.

Quietly, he started to fumble with the stems, folding them over each other and weaving them together. It was too delicate a task for hands like his, yet he continued to try anyways. Byleth’s mother had more often made slits in the stems to thread the flowers through. She had thought this would be easier for Jeralt, but he wasn’t so sure. Ultimately, he didn’t make these too often– only enough so he never forgot the process.

He heard footsteps from behind, slow and steady. Byleth did this often to practice her stealth, but Jeralt could still hear the clink of her sword at her side and the click of her boots.

“Hey, kid,” he said without looking up. The footsteps stopped. A shadow fell across him. “You looking for me?”

Always a child of few words, Byleth hummed, “Mm hm.”

They fell into a comfortable silence. Jeralt used to wish that Byleth spoke more, but he had long grown to accept otherwise. He couldn’t change the way she was and he had naturally adjusted to her nonverbal cues like the way she stared things intently.

“Oh, this?” Jeralt said. He held it up so that Byleth could see it better. “Your mother taught me how to make these.”

Byleth’s eyes widened ever so slightly (so slight that a stranger wouldn’t have noticed it). 

“You want to learn?”

She nodded quietly.

“Alright.” He handed her his knife. “Go get some flowers you like. Make sure they still have the stems on like this.”

Byleth had always been a quick learner. He had taught her so much throughout her life so far: things like how to swing a sword or how to fish. He decided that this time would be different. Even though Byleth’s mother was long gone, he supposed that, through him, this could be something that she taught to Byleth.

They returned to camp together adorned in matching flower crowns (roughly made, but still a precious memento all the same).

**Author's Note:**

> Haha I'm still a sucker for writing these even though I haven't in a while. Might procrastinate writing the things I should actually be working on.
> 
> What did you think? Let me know in a comment and please leave kudos too!


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